[ARCHIVED THREAD] - declawing cat (Page 1 of 3)
Posted: 11/20/2008 10:34:23 AM EDT
| I wanted to get some opinions from the cat owners here on the subject. We have a make cat that's just over a year old and are considering doing it. Problem is, all the information we get on the subject seems to be one sided. Some articles say to not do it, no way, no how, ever. Others say that it's perfectly fine. Not really sure who to trust, so I figured I'd ask you guys. Most of you guys seem to own cats. |
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The last two cats I have had were both declawed. Front feet only.
It saves ALOT of furniture damage. Make sure and check on the procedure used by your vet. Ensure that it is done properly. Overall, I am glad we had it done. Some will say that its bad because they cannot hunt or use their claws for other tasks, such as defense. Well, he gets fed by the wife and I, no need for him to hunt. ETA; He says inside ALL the time. I trained him not to leave the house. |
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Most of you guys seem to own cats. 
My wife and I have some cats, and we don't declaw them. IMO, claws are part of the animal. If you cannot deal with the animal the way it's built, don't get it as a pet. I'm sure there's merit to the whole "cruelty" side of cutting the claws out of the paw argument too, but to me, it's more of a principle. If I'm getting a cat, I want a real cat, not some watered-down version of the animal. 
It's like dog owners who get the vocal cords on their dogs cut because they don't want to deal with the hassle of the barking. 
Also, if the cat were ever to escape and have to live outdoors on its own, it would be totally screwed without claws - so I'd hate to take away a survival tool from the animal. |
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If they ever go outdoors, forget it.
We have two cats that were clawing up everything... it was either that or getting rid of them. We got them declawed. They were up and about right away, no issues at all. They still instictively 'sharpen their claws' on the sofa every once in a while, but no damage. |
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Go out into your garage or tool shed...get into your tool box and get a pair of side-cutter pliers or tin snips...cut off the ends of each of your own fingers, right at the first joint just behind your fingernails. Anesthesia is ok, but don't take anything for the pain after the anesthesia wears-off.
Any questions? 
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I'm no expert but I think it's a painful to declaw. I wouldn't do it because:
- Cat can't defend itself - Cat can't grip tree's, anything else it climbs Mostly for #2. Wouldn't want my kitty falling out of a tree. I used to try and keep my cat off the sofa, then I gave up. Is it clawing up furniture? |
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I would invest the time and effort in trying to train them properly before I resorted to declawing a pet.
Try compressed air, sticky tape, water bottle etc....to break them of the habit. And give them plenty of approved places to scratch like mats and posts. If it came down to it I would declaw but not as the first option. |
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Christ, I started a thread like this over at Glocktalk a couple years ago. You'd have thought I asked whether cats taste best broiled or stewed. The PETAs were freaking the fuck out.
Get the cats declawed if you want. They'll be back to their playful selves in a couple days and you won't have any problems with ripped furniture. |
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Look at your hand, now think if someone cutting each finger off at the first knuckle. Thats de-clawing.
Provide them something to scratch. Mine like the cardboard things you can but at Wal-mart. Teach them not to claw the furniture. Spray bottles and a loud "NO" worked with mine. |
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Quoted:
I wanted to get some opinions from the cat owners here on the subject. We have a make cat that's just over a year old and are considering doing it. Problem is, all the information we get on the subject seems to be one sided. Some articles say to not do it, no way, no how, ever. Others say that it's perfectly fine. Not really sure who to trust, so I figured I'd ask you guys. Most of you guys seem to own cats. If the cat is an indoor cat I like having them declawed. It doesn't seem to traumatize them & it greatly decreases damage to property & person in the house. On the other hand I wouldn't declaw an outdoor or indoor/outdoor cat. |
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Our cats are indoor only.
Indoor only cats live around 3 times longer on average. If you will ever let the cat outside on its own do not declaw. We declaw the front claws only. The lesbians at the first vet we went to told us they would turn into biters, not true. They tried to sell us some hokey glue on rubber nail covers. I don't know how could hold onto a struggling cat and operate a tube of superglue while you try to glue on 8-20 tiny frigging rubber doohickies without getting scratched and bit all to hell and then super glued to the cat who is doing the scratching. Get a good vet who only clips the claw off, not one who uses the guillotine and removes a large portion of the digit. Have them do it at the same time you have the cat fixed so it only has to undergo one anesthesia. Improperly declawed cats have smallish looking paws because they cut off too much of the toes. You can't tell our cats are declawed, they have massive paws. |
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Get them a scratching post or some of these http://farm1.static.flickr.com/209/507312172_ef49edfcc4.jpg?v=0 We use those exact pads. My wife buys two of the biggest ones, cuts the cardboard on one side, and glue/tapes them together somehow to make a giant pad. The cats absolutely love them, and they've stopped clawing everything else. IMHO, declawing is pretty cruel. They sell special double-sided tape for furniture and door frames, and the scratching pads above give them something else to scratch. You can also trim their claws or use softpaws covers. |
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IMO, claws are part of the animal. If you cannot deal with the animal the way it's built, don't get it as a pet. I'm sure there's merit to the whole "cruelty" side of cutting the claws out of the paw argument too, but to me, it's more of a principle. If I'm getting a cat, I want a real cat, not some watered-down version of the animal.  Once again, we're in the exact same page. |
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Just buy one of these.
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751866 NOT one of those round fuckers. My cats take those apart in 3 days. I've had this rectangle one for 4 months now. |
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I have 2 cats and both have their claws. They are indoor cats only and do not go outside at all. Get them good scratching posts, not just one! Punish them with water squirt bottles if the claw on something they are not supposed to. The downside is that no matter how well you train them, you will never be able to have leather furniture!
Dale |
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Our cats are indoor only. Indoor only cats live around 3 times longer on average. If you will ever let the cat outside on its own do not declaw. We declaw the front claws only. The lesbians at the first vet we went to told us they would turn into biters, not true. They tried to sell us some hokey glue on rubber nail covers. I don't know how could hold onto a struggling cat and operate a tube of superglue while you try to glue on 8-20 tiny frigging rubber doohickies without getting scratched and bit all to hell and then super glued to the cat who is doing the scratching. Get a good vet who only clips the claw off, not one who uses the guillotine and removes a large portion of the digit. Have them do it at the same time you have the cat fixed so it only has to undergo one anesthesia. Improperly declawed cats have smallish looking paws because they cut off too much of the toes. You can't tell our cats are declawed, they have massive paws. Yup, those are called "Soft Paws" and they can be a pain in the ass to affix. As has been said many times, if the cats are 100% indoor cats then just get the declawing done and call it a day. I promise you, the cats will not hate you for more than a couple days. |
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Ever look at SoftPaws?
We put these on our cats claws and he cant hurt shit any more. Takes some patience to get them on and they must be replaced ever 4 - 6 weeks or so due to natural claw shedding. I personally will not declaw my cat. It's not just the claw that gets removed. The last bone in each toe gets removed as well. How would you like to be missing the last knuckel on all your fingers? |
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Yeah, my declawed cat meowed from pain constantly after the procedure, and was never the same. 
Don't buy into the "its cruel" hype. Its a great way to save your furniture, and the cat will act exactly the same after its done. Imagine having your fingers chopped off just below your fingernails. 
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Most of you guys seem to own cats. 
My wife and I have some cats, and we don't declaw them. IMO, claws are part of the animal. If you cannot deal with the animal the way it's built, don't get it as a pet. I'm sure there's merit to the whole "cruelty" side of cutting the claws out of the paw argument too, but to me, it's more of a principle. If I'm getting a cat, I want a real cat, not some watered-down version of the animal.
It's like dog owners who get the vocal cords on their dogs cut because they don't want to deal with the hassle of the barking. 
Also, if the cat were ever to escape and have to live outdoors on its own, it would be totally screwed without claws - so I'd hate to take away a survival tool from the animal. +1 A friend's declawed cat got outside and couldn't climb back into the window. Couldn't climb a tree and couldn't defend itself against predators. 
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Yeah, my declawed cat meowed from pain constantly after the procedure, and was never the same.
Don't buy into the "its cruel" hype. Its a great way to save your furniture, and the cat will act exactly the same after its done. Imagine having your fingers chopped off just below your fingernails. Imagine having your balls cut off with no/local anesthesia, or having a rubber band around them until they fall off. I don't see anyone bitching about the cruelty done to farm animals, but as soon as Fluffy is in the picture its a whole different story. |
| I was just concerned after reading about a lot of litter box problems afterwards. The vet told my wife to buy some special litter because our normal stuff could get in the wounds and really screw him up. This is an indoor cat only BTW. The closest he's ever come to going out is sometimes he'll stand by the door when we're coming in or out and he'll shake his fist at the cold air. He loves sitting by windows but is deathly afraid of going out, kind of like going in the shower. He'll grab on to whatever he can and hold on for dear life rather that go outside or in the shower. |
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I'm of the "Don't De-Claw" mindset. Cats have claws. If you don't want to deal with that , don't have a cat. It is painfull to the cat during recovery. Regular trimming of their claws will help keep the scratch factor down. Getting them a "toy" that's ok to scratch will help too. Training a cat - ha that's funny. But they can be discouraged from clawing on the furniture by consistent training/scolding and the prescence of sometime to scratch. Catnip will help to draw them to the scratching sopt as well. Cats are good pets IMO , their claws and ability to fend for themselves is part of what makes them good pets to me. Cutting off their claws is an unnatural mutilation of an animal that was designed well to do what it does well.
-JC |
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Most of you guys seem to own cats.
My wife and I have some cats, and we don't declaw them. IMO, claws are part of the animal. If you cannot deal with the animal the way it's built, don't get it as a pet. I'm sure there's merit to the whole "cruelty" side of cutting the claws out of the paw argument too, but to me, it's more of a principle. If I'm getting a cat, I want a real cat, not some watered-down version of the animal.
It's like dog owners who get the vocal cords on their dogs cut because they don't want to deal with the hassle of the barking.
Also, if the cat were ever to escape and have to live outdoors on its own, it would be totally screwed without claws - so I'd hate to take away a survival tool from the animal. My neighbors have a BIG orange tabby who is declawed and he has nearly wiped out the jackrabbit population in the area. But my advice would be to not declaw, sometimes it can lead to a psychological change that is not good. |
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I have two cat's that were declawed when I adopted them from the shelter. I don't think they know they don't have claws. They swat at my GF's dogs like they have them. I even caught one shapening his (imaginary) claws on my close hamper the other day. At first I was about to yell at him and then I was like when I remember he don't have claws.
Personally I wouldn't have it done to a cat. But in my mind if that is what it takes for them to keep a loving home and not get put out then its a good thing. |
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Yeah, my declawed cat meowed from pain constantly after the procedure, and was never the same.
Don't buy into the "its cruel" hype. Its a great way to save your furniture, and the cat will act exactly the same after its done. Imagine having your fingers chopped off just below your fingernails. Imagine having your balls cut off with no/local anesthesia, or having a rubber band around them until they fall off. I don't see anyone bitching about the cruelty done to farm animals, but as soon as Fluffy is in the picture its a whole different story. It is because you don't eat Fluffy... Poor little kitty... As a cat owner––I would never do it.. She never claws on furniture...She does on the carpet on the steps––but not on the furniture...When your cat does it––just swat her on the bottom with paper or whatever... Poor little kitty... |
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Declawing = gun ban Some vets won't de-claw cats because they like to HELP animals. If the cat gets out, it leaves them defenseless and unable to run up a tree. Plus, it's just plain cruel. Also keep in mind, that liberals like to get their cats de-clawed. It helps keep the animal dependent on their master. Don't do it. |
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Never have, never will. If you dont want stuff scratched, get a cat tree or scratching post and train the cat. Yes, they can be trained that the tree is "theirs" and the furniture is "yours".
If the cat pisses you off you cant throw it outside if it is declawed. |
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The last two cats I have had were both declawed. Front feet only. It saves ALOT of furniture damage. Make sure and check on the procedure used by your vet. Ensure that it is done properly. Overall, I am glad we had it done. Some will say that its bad because they cannot hunt or use their claws for other tasks, such as defense. Well, he gets fed by the wife and I, no need for him to hunt. ETA; He says inside ALL the time. I trained him not to leave the house. This. My 3 cats have been declawed, they are indoor only and I'm fine with it. They are also fixed. |
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If they ever go outdoors, forget it. We have two cats that were clawing up everything... it was either that or getting rid of them. We got them declawed. They were up and about right away, no issues at all. They still instictively 'sharpen their claws' on the sofa every once in a while, but no damage. I agree they become inside-only animals after the procedure, had the same problem with my cats... and: Quoted:
I would invest the time and effort in trying to train them properly before I resorted to declawing a pet. Try compressed air, sticky tape, water bottle etc....to break them of the habit. And give them plenty of approved places to scratch like mats and posts. If it came down to it I would declaw but not as the first option. I tried to teach them, but they were having none of that  !
I cared about them too much to get rid of them (and who would adopt cats knowing they scratch the heck out of furniture) so the claws came out. They didn't even notice and were terrorizing the herd of fuzzy green mice in the living room in no time. They are a part of the family so giving them up was not an option. Both my parents cats learned very quickly not to touch the furniture and use scratching posts only, so no reason to declaw them. I suggest you try to train them, then use declawing as a last resort. |
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Most of you guys seem to own cats.
My wife and I have some cats, and we don't declaw them. IMO, claws are part of the animal. If you cannot deal with the animal the way it's built, don't get it as a pet. I'm sure there's merit to the whole "cruelty" side of cutting the claws out of the paw argument too, but to me, it's more of a principle. If I'm getting a cat, I want a real cat, not some watered-down version of the animal.
It's like dog owners who get the vocal cords on their dogs cut because they don't want to deal with the hassle of the barking.
Also, if the cat were ever to escape and have to live outdoors on its own, it would be totally screwed without claws - so I'd hate to take away a survival tool from the animal. Are the cats neutered? |
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After reading your first post, I have to ask, why are you considering declawing? You didn't mention a reason. Hard to offer an opinion without knowing. I never really gave it any thought. It's my wifes cat and she wanted to get it done. He does like to claw the couch and the carpet on the stairs. I never really had a problem with just cutting his nails, hell, I've got to do the dogs anyway, just toss me the other critter. She's getting him fixed in December and they're supposed to be giving him a fentanyl patch to wear for a couple of days. The vet asked if while he's knocked out we wanted them to do some other shit to him like clean his teeth and stuff. She said yeah, why the hell not if I'm already paying to have him knocked out. That's when the vet asked if we wanted to have him declawed while he was knocked out and on the fentanyl patch anyway. It seemed like a good idea since he does like to scratch and poke holes in the furniture. Then I started reading all this shit about how it's maiming the cat and they can have all kinds of issues afterwards and now have to give it some serious thought. I don't want to fuck the cat up. I'm not concerned about it being outside, at all. I am concerned about it getting infections, permanent pain, or more fucked up in the head than he already is. |
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Yeah, my declawed cat meowed from pain constantly after the procedure, and was never the same.
Don't buy into the "its cruel" hype. Its a great way to save your furniture, and the cat will act exactly the same after its done. Imagine having your fingers chopped off just below your fingernails. Imagine having your balls cut off with no/local anesthesia, or having a rubber band around them until they fall off. I don't see anyone bitching about the cruelty done to farm animals, but as soon as Fluffy is in the picture its a whole different story. It is because you don't eat Fluffy... Poor little kitty... As a cat owner––I would never do it.. She never claws on furniture...She does on the carpet on the steps––but not on the furniture...When your cat does it––just swat her on the bottom with paper or whatever... Poor little kitty... Tell that to the Chinese (and the Koreans since they eat dog). I ask again, why the outrage over declawing a cat, but not letting a farm animal's balls rot off? Its a helluva lot more cruel, but I don't see any defended the poor farm animals simply because we eat them as food. Its because people have some ungodly misconception that their pets are somehow more than a "regular" animal. Its very hypocritical to say its cruel for one animal, but not for another. |
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Declawing a cat puts a big handicap on it. They need their claws to hunt with and defend themselves. My cat, Fred (Stupid, for short) catches birds, rats, and rabbits all the time. Without his claws, he'd probably have been killed by one of his feral brethern by now.
Leave the damn cat outside. With all parts attached. |